Large parts of the Internet are simply a media clearinghouse, used to transmit and store information between parties with little value add beyond providing interfaces. Who controls the media and how it is structured, and how it addresses its audience, is usually the interesting part. Throw in some aggregators (which mine and organize the clearinghouses), some with search indices, and online shopping and I think we've this thing covered.
EMail (SMTP), Usenet (NNTP), Web {Forums|Blogs|CMS|etc} (HTTP). All made from the same stuff. But the interesting part of a book isn't usually that it's made of paper, nor is it interesting to compare two books on that basis.
Joel's abstaction is ironic considering it comes from the person who criticized architecture astronauts for excessive abstraction.
EMail (SMTP), Usenet (NNTP), Web {Forums|Blogs|CMS|etc} (HTTP). All made from the same stuff. But the interesting part of a book isn't usually that it's made of paper, nor is it interesting to compare two books on that basis.
Joel's abstaction is ironic considering it comes from the person who criticized architecture astronauts for excessive abstraction.